Every Storm Runs Out Of Rain
by I Use To Be Love Drunk-RA
Summary: Huck sat on the stairs and watched as his new friend talked with her old friend. -her better friend- Scarlet was the first girl he liked but he knew the feeling that was coming over him. Jealousy. He didn't feel it very often, because he never focused on things that would make him jealous. But he's never felt this.
1. Chapter 1

To say that the small town of St. Petersburg was surprised when the cowboy, Mr. Anderson, came to town with a herd of cattle and a small herd of boys to round them up was an understatement. They were bewildered. To the point where Moff Potter actually stopped drinking for a few days, just to get a look at the cowboys. But the surprises didn't end there. Mr. Anderson's daughter, Scarlet, was with them too. She was riding in the back with their wagon and chef, Mr. Nightlinger, but she was on horseback and helping the boys round up the cows and keeping any from wondering off. That shocked the town to its core. Girls weren't supposed to do that kind of stuff, they were supposed to stay home and cook and clean and take care of the kids. A lot of the boys in town were a little weary of her, though they tried not to let that show through. A few of them went up to her and asked her, "What's a girl like you doing with all those work that's made for men?" To which she replied. "What's a boy like you going to do when you get trampled by a herd of cows?" The boys didn't know wether or not to take the girl seriously or not, they hoped that they didn't have to. But there were two boys in particular that kept a very keen interest in her.

Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, the heroes of the town that had discovered treasure.

Though Scarlet actually showed little interest in them, wether they were trying to talk to her or someone was talking to her about them. It didn't matter though. In a few days Scarlet, her father, the cows, and the cowboys would all be on their way again. But that changed pretty quickly. The chef fell ill and couldn't go anywhere, not only that but one of the horses was injured. They weren't sure how but it was obvious that the horse was in great pain. Everyone had their own conclusion as to why it was, but it was never proven. Any of them. So the large group had to settle down in that small town for a while and it was quite interesting. To say the least.

Scarlet was a pretty girl, prettier then a lot of girls in St. Petersburg. She had long brown-blonde hair that went to her mid-back, sun-kissed skin from being outside so long, and sea green eyes. She was older than a few of them, around Huck's age. Which, at the time, was fifteen years old. Since she was fifteen that also meant that she looked more 'grown up' then all the other girls but she was still skinny and sort of small.

Tom didn't dare mention the new beauty to Becky, though the Thatcher girl never showed any sign of resentment or any of those kind of emotions towards the other girl. But Huck wouldn't stop talking about it. Tom got the idea that his friend had a crush on her but soon dismissed it. He was still trying to get used to Huck going to school and staying in town for more than a few months at a time. Though the boy did have a tendency to sneak off once or twice during the night, he usually brought Tom along.

"What's that?" Sid asked wide eyed as he stared at the rope one of the boys, that came with Mr. Anderson, was wrapping around there shoulder.  
"It's a lasso," Tom said as he watched the boy too, it looked interesting. "When a cow tries to run away they throw that rope and catch it around its neck, then bring it back."  
"But that will hurt the cow!"

Tom ignored Sid and continued to watch the boy as he finished and put the lasso in his saddle bag for easy access. Both boys froze when one familiar boy rode up. There was one Mexican in the group of young cowboys that Mr. Anderson brought to town, his name was Sumaron. He was a great rider and herder, not to mention a great fighter. All the boys were scared of him, including Huck. Even though the great Huckleberry Finn would never admit that. Tom was so absorbed in watching the boys that he didn't even notice the stranger sneaking up on him.

"You haven't blinked for about ten minutes so ether you see something very interesting or you got the fear knocked right out of you," a voice said.

Tom recognized the accent and turned his head to come face to face with the smiling Scarlet Anderson. Sid had wondered off by now and Tom made a mental note to beat him later for it. After all, he was supposed to be 'watching' him while Aunt Polly and Mary talked to some friends. The boy continued to stare at the beautiful girl until she smiled and climbed up onto the fence that she had been leaning against. Tom's mind raced. What was he suppose to say?

"So how is the nigger feeling?" He asked. His hands flew to his mouth once the words escaped it, had he really just called the chef a nigger? The new girl probably wouldn't like that. But she took no mind in it, and if she did then she hid it very well.  
"Fine," Scarlet replied as she looked over at the two boys and whistled sharply to get there attention. The boys turned to her, their horses even looked over. "Where's Charddy?" She asked and one boy said something that Tom could barley hear, but Scarlet nodded as if she heard whatever her friend said, which she probably did.

"Hey Tom!" A familiar voice called and the brunette looked over to see Huck walking over, though he faltered a little when he saw who his friend was with.

In that moment the idea of Huck having a crush on Scarlet came to the younger boys mind but he pushed it away and turned to his friend with a small smile. Scarlet was tracing patterns in the dirt with the toe of her boot and didn't seem to notice the other boy. Tom was about to say something about it when they heard a scream. Then someone yelling Scarlet's name. Tom and Huck glanced at each other then over at Scarlet, to see that she had already gone. They quickly ran after her and when they got to where the screams were coming from there was already about half the town there. A small boy, about nine or ten, was standing there with a terrified expression as one of Tom's rivals, Alfred, glared down at him. The older, and obviously bigger, boy had the smaller boys shirt in his hands and he was lifting the boy off the ground by it. Before Scarlet could do anything to help the boy a loud, angry yell filled everyone's ears.

"Put him down!"

The people turned to see Mr. Anderson walk over and grab Alfred by the scruff of the neck, pulling him away from the smaller boy. Once he was free the small boy ran over to Scarlet and hugged her waist tightly. Still looking completely terrified. Before Mr. Anderson could chew out Alfred the boys own mother pushed herself through the crowd and started doing it for him. It was interesting to watch, because Alfred was supposed to be so polite and good.

After reassuring the little boy, Charddy, his name was Charddy, that he was going to be okay Scarlet brought him over to the other boys. Fatso, the chubby one in the group, stepped forward and put a hand on the youngest's shoulder. Charddy followed Fatso to the others and let the girl go back to where she had been previously standing. Right next to Tom and Huck. The two boys were staring at her with a bewildered expression, even though she wasn't the one at had done anything. It had been the fact that the little boy had cried out her name when he was about to be beaten by the other boy. Why would he call to Scarlet?! She was a girl! Actually, no, never mind about that topic. Tom knew exactly why Charddy had called out for Scarlet, he had seen the girl fight before. Even thou she had just been messing around with some of her friends, a small group of St. Petersburg boys gathered around and watched in amazement as the girl beat one boy after the other. And that was why Charrdy called out to her first instead of the other boys. She could easily beat any boy, and some of the men, for that matter, any time if she wanted too. But, of course, she would get her head bit off by her dad if she did. Though she came close too it because Alfred had threatened Charddy. Not even the boys she's been traveling with for two months now could explain exactly what the girls relationship was with the little boy. The just summed it up to her acting like an overprotective mother, or sister. He was the baby out of them after all. With his wide brown eyes, small frame, and innocent look you couldn't help but wonder how he had managed to convince Mr. Anderson that he could herd cows with the rest of them. Everyone in town thought that his parents must be worried sick having their son out in the wild with Mr. Anderson, who was a piece of work when he wanted to be. Which was almost every single day that he was delayed in the little town.

They had a schedule to keep and because of the chef becoming sick they would probably never make it to... Wherever they were going in time. Sumaron had tried to keep the other boys spirits up but failed, just like the boys before him had. It was a repeating pattern. And, lets just say, the boys (and girl) couldn't wait for the chef to be better again.


	2. Chapter 2

Huckleberry Finn never actually had a crush on a girl before, he had thought a girl was pretty and that maybe he would have had a crush on her, maybe, if he would have stayed in whatever town she was in. But it was different with Scarlet. She was adventurous just like him and charismatic. She was brave and wasn't afraid to stand up to herself, even if it was a fight she knew that she couldn't win. Actually she always won the fights, unless some adult came to stop it before she or the person she was fighting with could claim victory. He tried to hide , he didn't even know what the feeling was at first and he definitely didn't want to talk about it so he never mentioned it to anyone. Tom suspected it, right away he did. He let it slip once or twice that he knew something about how Huck felt but he wouldn't repeat what he said, no matter how much his friend threatened him. He knew that the punishment for saying what he did would be much worse then the punishment of not telling.

Scarlet did seem a little interested in Huck. She would tease him sometimes, when Widow Douglas made him slick back his hair for school. It seemed somewhat unnatural and the new girl could easily tell that. None of the cowboys she hung out with questioned her about Tom and Huck, they were too busy or not interested. The two, Scarlet and Huck, had a very interesting relationship. When Tom described it to Aunt Polly she said it was a love-hate relationship, much like the one she had with him. The next time Sid saw Tom's friend at school he ran and told him, leaving Huck wondering what the hell that boy was talking about.

When Mr. Nightlinger finally got better the group was far, far behind. Then Mr. Anderson did something that shocked everyone. He asked Widow Douglas to look after Scarlet and that he would be back in a few months to get her. The man was actually going to leave his daughter in St. Petersburg and take the herd to wherever they needed to take it. That's something that no one around the village knew. Tom and Sid would sit at in the school yard and watch Scarlet and Huck. They would sit a few yards away from the rest of the kids and they would just talk to each other, they actually had a lot in common. They were different from the rest of the boys and girls. Widow Douglas started to force Scarlet into wearing a dress around town, or at least on Sunday. Otherwise she had to fight tooth-and-nail to get that girl to even consider wearing a dress. Even though it was very unladylike like. Most boys admired how Scarlet fought for what she wanted but it also gave them another reason to be terrified of her, which they were. They were complete and utterly terrified. Tom and Huck tried not to let it show but it would show through sometimes and Scarlet would take that to her advantage. Sid also took a liking to the girl. She was obviously fond of little kids, even though she could be just like Tom and think their the most annoying things that have ever walked the planet.

"Hey Huck!" Tom yelled running over to his friend after Sunday school. Huck didn't answer, he was busy staring at something and Tom craned his neck to see what it was.

Of course the older boy was staring at Scarlet, Widow Douglas had forced her to wear a dress, but it was a simple dress, and it was a blue color. Most of the boys had commented about how she looked, some girls even admitted that she looked pretty. Tom noticed that throughout the day he had caught Huck, multiple times, staring at the girl. Who could blame him though? It was Scarlet Anderson, a pretty stranger who could do anything just as good as a boy could. When he tried confronting his friend about it he had received a beating but not a ad one, they both knew that they would never hear the end of it if they came home all dirty and bruised again.

"Huck," Tom said in a sing-song voice, a small smirk coming to his lips as he looked at the older boy.  
"What is it?" Huck asked looking over at the other boy.  
"Do you like her?" The younger boy asked with a little difficulty, he was thinking of the beating that he would probably get. But, to his surprise, it never came. Huckleberry Finn, for once in his life, stood silent before his best friend. He didn't know what else to say at that point. Did he like her? Was that the cause of the strange feeling he got whenever he saw her or talked to her. The feeling even came when someone mentioned her name. And, in that moment as he hesitated, Tom knew that he was right.

Scarlet came around the right time of year because two weeks after her father left was the day of the picnic. The same picnic that Becky and Tom had got lost in the cave, but that was last year. And this time their was no Injuin Joe and no murder. All there was was a happy little village and a pretty new girl. Of course there was the fact that Scarlet would have to wear a dress. She knew this, but she still tried to fight it. Huck sat on the stairs and watched in amusement as Widow Douglas did everything she could, in her power, to try and persuade the girl to wear a dress. Finally she was successful too. Widow Douglas sent Huck off to get himself ready as she took Scarlet to the spare bedroom. Well, one of the spare bedrooms that she had in her house. About twenty minutes later Huck was waiting patiently at the bottom of the stairs and he saw Widow Douglas hurry a form down the hall then down the stairs. He could barley even recognize the girl. Her hair was curly and somehow it was now a chocolate brown color, she seemed to be wearing something on her eyelashes that made them darker and longer, and her cheeks were a slight pink. As if she were blushing. She was in a plain blue dress but, of course, she looked stunning in it. The boys face flushed when Widow Douglas told him to tell her how pretty she looked. She did look pretty but did he really have to admit that he thought she did? Hopefully she would think he just said it because Widow Douglas told her to.

On the way there they walked and the widow decided to take the longer trail, saying that it was good exercise, but she didn't know that it would exhaust the two young souls with her. Since they had left early the older woman knew that they would be there early, but she knew that even if they were running late that wouldn't had stopped the two from dilly-dallying. At one point Huck had taunted Scarlet about her being slower than him since the last time she had tried to hit him he had run away before she could. And he dodged another swing from the girl only to be chased after by the determined female. Widow Douglas didn't worry about it. The boy got what was coming to him and she knew that Scarlet wouldn't be too hard on him, or, at least, she hoped not. She had lost sight of the two because they had ran into the trees but she could still hear them, laughing and yelling at each other. Huck had slowed down because he was out of breath and Scarlet came up to him but instead of hitting him she wrapped her arms around him and laughed. The boy stared at her in confusion, wasn't she going to hit him? He got his answer when she pulled away and punched his arm. Hard, but he knew that she would have done it a lot harder to any other boy. He smiled, for some reason he was proud of himself, and they slipped out of the trees back into the view of the widow.

"Scarlet," Huck said looking over at the brunette and she glanced up at him. "When do you think your father will come back?"  
"I don't know... Maybe in a few months," the girl responded. Widow Douglas listened quietly and intently to the conversation.  
"If you leave then... Will you... Uh, will you miss anyone?" He asked, stumbling over his words and blushing again. Huck bit his lip and looked away, a little ashamed that he couldn't talk right. She must think I'm stupid or something, he thought to himself bitterly.  
"Well, of course I would miss some people. Everyone's been really nice, especially Widow Douglas," the girl said and flashed a smile over her shoulder at the widow. "Why?"  
"Because," the boy said softly as they continued to walk.

Widow Douglas smiled looking at the two youths, they were so oblivious to each other's feelings. Scarlet did tease Huck sometimes by saying he had a crush on her, but she didn't know that he actually did. With a sigh of relief they came to the spot where the picnic was supposed to be held. Muff Potter was already there along with Judge Thatcher, and his family. Huck immediately ran over to Muff so the town drunk could tell him one of his amazing stories. The town had no doubt that most of it was a tall tale but there was some truth behind it. Scarlet shyly made her way over to Becky, she didn't really like situations like this. When she was the only one there, it made her feel strange but somehow she managed to say hello and the two girls went off with each other.

The other people of the small village started to come slowly and soon enough Tom was there too. He sat next to Huck and listened intently to Muff's story. Scarlet was with the other girls, for once, and was actually having a good time. The adults started getting food ready for their children and a few minutes later everyone sat down and started eating.


	3. Chapter 3

Scarlet had made a few friends while in St. Petersburg, the only friends she had back home where all those cowboys that came to work for her father. Or, at least, the ones that started working for him a year before. Her closest friend was Slim, the second oldest of the boys, and Cimarron, the oldest and part Mexican. Then there was little Charddy. His actual name was Charlie but after an early morning one of the boys, Bob, had mispronounced it and said Charddy. It began as a pet name but over time the group used it more and more frequently. He was the youngest, around eleven or ten, and he was scrawnine than the other boys. But the boy still tried to be as tough and brave as them. When things got very serious he could be. They were great friends and, after a few months, they knew that Scarlet could take care of herself and they shouldn't treat her like they would do to any other girl.

Huck was close friends with Scarlet after about a day of her staying with Widow Douglas. The older boy also knew not to treat her like he normally would treat a girl, wether it was the polite way or the other way. Tom was like a little brother to the new girl, a good friend too. But there was still that brother-sister bond that they had. The girls in the village were a different story. They would be nice to the new girl and everything that their parents expected them to be towards her but they weren't really friends. Except for Becky, they were friends. But, of course, not very close.

"Huck. Huck. HUCK!"

The blonde groaned and rolled over in his bed then felt something hit his arm, hard, then another thing hit his arm but this time it was even harder. His eyes flew open and he spun around. He was greeted by two smiling, mishevious faces. Huck groaned when he saw them then rubbed his eyes and pushed his hair out of his eyes.

"What do you want?" He asked, tired and wanting sleep.  
"Get up," Scarlet said simply. She and Tom continued kneeling by the side of his bed, staring at him intently.  
"Why?" The older boy asked with a raised eyebrow.  
"Because. Get up," the brunette said. This time she grabbed his hand and attempted to pull him out of bed but Huck pulled his hand away.  
"Go away," he muttered as he rolled over, his back to them, and attempted to go back to sleep again.

Tom and Scarlet exchanged glances and smiled widely at each other.

"Fine, you'll just miss the _adventure_ we're going on. Tell Widow Douglas and Aunt Polly we'll be back in a few weeks," Tom said as he stood up, Scarlet following.

The older boy turned his eyes to them and raised an eyebrow as he watched them, he noticed the piece of clothing draped over the girls shoulders and sat up a bit.

"Is that my-"  
"Yes, it is."

Huck glared at the girl and she smiled innocently at him, following Tom out the window. After a few minutes of laying in bed, debating his options, he sighed and got up. A few minutes later he met the other two, who had been waiting for him at the end of the yard.

The next day Aunt Polly woke up and knew that Tom was off on one of his 'adventures' again. Especially because she found Sid in bed with a sock in his mouth and a jar on his stomach, a rather big spider inside of it. The elderly woman sighed but got Sid out of bed and went to make breakfast for herself, Mary, and Sid. What she wasn't expecting was Widow Douglas coming to check if Huck and Scarlet were at her house. Both of them were missing two. It didn't take long for both elderly women to figure out that the three had probably gone off together. But where did they go?

"Hurry up! You two are so slow!"  
"We wouldn't be so slow if you would let us rest for awhile!"  
"Then we would be loosing daylight!"

Tom muttered to himself as he continued to follow the girl through the woods, Huck right next to him. They had to wonder how she could keep up with the constant energy that she had. They just guessed that she was used to going so long without stopping. After a few more minutes of the boys whining Scarlet finally agreed to stop and let them rest. But she didn't stop moving, oh no. She was walking around, climbing tress. Finally Huck had to pull her down beside him and hold her there for her to stop moving. She sighed softly and leaned back, using her arms for support.

"When are we going to be there?" She asked looking over at the two boys.  
"It shouldn't be long now, we might get there by noon tomorrow," Huck said with a small smile.

The girl nodded thoughtfully and wiggled out of the boys grip. Standing up she wondered over to where Tom had dropped the sack he had been carrying the whole time, another reason why the boy was so tired. He had extra weight. She nudged it with the toe of her boot then looked over at the dark haired boy.

"What's in here?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. Huck looked over at Tom because he to didn't know what the boy had in there.  
"Just a few extra things that we might need," Tom replied as he pulled the sac to him.  
"Like what?" Scarlet asked and resumed her seat next to Huck.

As Tom was telling her what kinds of things that he thought that they might needed if their 'adventure' went longer than it was actually meant to be, Huck was thinking to himself. He hadn't exactly listened to the whole plan. He just knew where they were going, but he didn't know why. Other than Tom's constant need for adventure and, apparently, Scarlet had that in her too. But then he began to worry. Widow Douglas would be angry with him for running off and not telling her about it. His solution to it? Nothing. He could possibly say that it was his nature. He had been grown up exploring, never tied down to one spot. But now he was. He had to admit that he sort of liked staying in one place, but he didn't like it. His thoughts were interrupted when he hears Tom calling his name.

"What?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.  
"Will you?" Tom asked and his friend raised an eyebrow.  
"What?" He asked.  
"If we do find it will you stay with us?"  
"Of course I would, even if there was no treasure."


	4. Chapter 4

The kids didn't come back until two days later and when they did they were dirty and tired, with nothing but something great that they only knew to makeup for it. No one asked about what happened because they knew that the three children would never tell them. But Becky was excited to see that Tom was alright. Huck and Scarlet stood off to the side awkwardly as Tom got all the attention as everyone fussed over him then they remembered that Scarlet had been in that adventure too and then they saw Huck. Most of the villagers were still not used to seeing him as Widow Douglass's adopted son. It just seemed... Wrong. Without a word the two older kids walked through the crowd of people and started to Widow Douglass's house, even though they knew that they were going to be in trouble. Huck more than Scarlet thought.

After Huck received a beating from Widow Douglas he was curled up in bed, facing the all. Scarlet had been sitting at the top of the stairs, her hands over her ears and her eyes closed while it all happened. But Huck couldn't help but feel resentful at the moment. He had the worst beating he had ever been given and she got nothing. But she also wasn't Widow Douglass's child, or any of the other villagers kids. Huck was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a creak on one of the floor boards. He spun around, his hand goi to his throwing knife that he had hidden in his bed from Widow Douglas. He relaxed once he saw it was Scarlet. His hand releases the knife and he looked at her, an eyebrow raised. The girl took that as a good sing, that he didn't still hate her and crawled into bed with him.

"What are you doing?!" Huck asked looking at her.  
"I had a nightmare," Scarlet admitted though she hated herself for it.  
"But you can't stay in here," the boy pointed out.  
"For a little while I can," the girl replied and the boy beside her sighed in defeat.

It was silent for a while the only sound was their breathing, the room was lit dimply b the lantern on the nightstand. It took a moment for Huck to realize that Scarlet had fallen back asleep. The only reason he really figured it out was because he turned over and saw her with her eyes closed, her breathing even. She looks so pretty when she sleeps, he thought to himself. He cursed himself for thinking that before carefully shaking her. She just groaned and pushed his hand away.

"You have to go back to your room," Huck told her quietly so they wouldn't wake the widow.  
"But-" she stopped because she knew that the boy was right. She sighed and got out of the bed then walked to her own room without so much as another word.

The next morning was school. Widow Douglas slicked back Huck's hair and made him wear the dress clothes that he had, while Scarlet wore her hair down and wore another one of the blue dresses she had been wearing for a while. And, as usual, she looked stunning in it. Huck and Scarlet went to Tom's house and waited for him to come out and when he did they all ran to school together, not minding how dirty they got. Of course the three of them, being the way they are, barley paid attention during the lesson in school. Tom tricked the teacher into thinking he didn't want to sit by the girls as a punishment for being late. He sat by Becky after that. Scarlet couldn't believe that the teacher didn't pick up on that. It was obvious.

Tom went with Becky after school instead of going with Scarlet and Huck, so they walked by themselves through town. A few of the girls from school whispered to each other behind their hands as the two passed by. But once Scarlet and Huck turned to look at them they squealed and ran away, going to another spot to spy on the two. After a while the pair just ignored the girls and continued to walk home. Widow Douglas was out, doing whatever she did, the two weren't sure at the moment. Huck got changed into some of his old clothes and gave Scarlet something to change into, since she couldn't be wearing anything nice for what they were about to do. Scarlet also took Huck's old coat, which had become her new favorite item out of any piece of clothing. If she could she would wear it every day but she couldn't so she just let it go.

"Tom knows that where to meet us, doesn't he Huck-y?" Scarlet asked looking over at him. Huck nodded and continued with his pacing, it was getting late so why was Tom taking so long? After another few more minutes Scarlet and Huck made the decision to go without him when suddenly the younger boy came running up.  
"You guys were going to leave me," he said looking at them accusingly.  
"You shouldn't have taken so long," Scarlet replied and they started walking.

A few villagers saw them walk into the forest but didn't ask the children about it. They knew that those three children would be fine in the woods alone, or, at least, they thought they would be. Tom and Huck had gotten out of a murders grasp while finding a treasure in the process. And Scarlet, well no one even knew why they thought shed could keep herself alive out in the wilderness for so long. It was because of how she seemed to be raised.

"If your not home in the morning what will your aunt do?" Scarlet asked suddenly as the three of them made their way through the trees.  
"I don't know," Tom said honestly. "What do you think Widow Douglas would-"

"DAMMIT LONG HAIR!"

The three jumped and quickly hid behind a tree. Scarlet behind the one next to the one where the boys were. They peered around the side to see four men, two just standing there looking scared, the biggest one of them all was yelling at another man who looked strong but sort of scrawny. Scarlet recognized him. She gasped then covered her mouth and the three children quickly hid back behind the trees. The man looked over in the direction, a suspicious look on his face. He slowly began to approach the trees, pulling out his pistol as he did so. Suddenly one of the horses let out a startled neigh. The man spun around and shot at where he thought the intruder was. It was just a rattlesnake trying to slither it's way towards their extra horse. He spun back around when he heard a twig snap. He turned just in time to see three retreating backs disappear into the trees. Kids! He was caught out her by kids!

"Hey!" He yelled trying to get them to stop but they didn't. The man glared in the direction the three had disappeared into and ran over to his horse, jumping onto it. He quickly rode in the direction that Huck, Scarlet, and Tom went in.


	5. Chapter 5

"What was that?" Tom yelled even though he knew his friends didn't have a good reason.  
"We were lucky we got away," Huck said as he sat on a tree branch, once he was done climbing up higher in the tree that he was in. Scarlet stayed silent, sitting next to atom on the rock. She drew patterns in the dirt with the toe of her boot and everything became quiet.  
"We should probably get going," the youngest said quietly and the older two nodded, knowing what he said was true, unless they wanted to get cuffed in the ears.

The three started on their way home. It was completely silent too. Huck walked ahead of the group, being the oldest he felt like he was the leader of this little group. Scarlet and Tom stayed side by side, practically matching each others strides too. The boy bit the inside of his cheek as he thought to himself. They really didn't know what to do at the moment. They just saw criminals. Too close to St. Petersburg of you ask them. Tom was still thinking of ways that they could make someone believe them so that none of them would get in trouble and no one would get hurt. People believed him more often now, after what happened with Injuin Joe. But sometimes they didn't, thinking that what he said was impossible or he was pulling their leg. But why would he do that with something as serious as this?!

Upon arriving back in the village they were greeted by many relived villagers. Widow Douglas hugged Huck but then cuffed him. She didn't touch Scarlet though, believing that the girl just went along to make sure the boys didn't get I to that much trouble. Aunt Polly hugged Tom real close, he barley could breath in his aunts embrace. But he liked it anyway. It was good to know that you had people who cared about you. Scarlet actually gave Huck a hug, seeing that he looked a bit sad when everyone rushed to hug Tom first. He smiled a little at the fact that she even thought about hugging him.

"Scarlet, dear?"  
"Yes Widow Douglas?"  
"Why are you wearing that filthy thing?"

The little celebrations didn't last long. It wasn't because everyone wasn't happy to see them back and all in one piece. More of a wagon pulled into the village, drawn by three midnight black horses. A boy about sixteen years of age was driving it. But he seemed to be an expert at it. He stopped the wagon and climbed off, allowing the horses to rest. Everyone fell silent and a few people actually backed away. Leaving Huck, Tom, and Scarlet out in the open. Glancing around, Scarlet saw the look on the villagers faces. A man, no, a boy, shows up with a wagon that was clearly full of cooking utensils and such. Four midnight black horses that looked better than any horse anyone could ever imagine. They were probably all thinking the same thing. He works for somebody rich or he is rich himself. Maybe even richer then Huck and Tom.

"Is there a Scarlet Anderson here?" The boy asked and everyone looked over at the girl.  
"That would be me," she said as she met the boys gaze. He flashed her a smile and tilted his hat in greeting to her.  
"I'm Joseph," he told her. She searched her brain for any memory of meeting a boy named Joseph or even a boy that looked remotely like this one. There was none. "I work for your father."

Those five words silenced everybody. They all stared at the girl while she looked at the boy, observing him but then she shook her head. Everyone looked confused at what the girl was doing. The boy looked disappointed too.

"No, Joseph's work for my father. There was only one and-"  
"That's me!"  
"Rally? He died last year after being trappeled by a herd of cattle."

Silence once again came upon them and the boy, Joseph, if that was his name, looked around nervously. His eyes slowly moved back to Scarlet. Huck felt his body tense, not liking the fact that the boy was lying. What did he want with Scarlet? Tom seemed to be thinking the same thing, you could tell by the look on his face. It stayed silent for a few more minutes.

"I'm sorry," the boy said, "I must have the wrong Scarlet Anderson," he said and turned to go back to his wagon.  
"Nice try Slim," Scarlet called out.

Huck and Tom became confused. Was her voice- playful? The boy turned and smiled and her, hugging her once he got close enough. How did she even know him?! Did he really work for her father?! So many questions flooded the boys mind but they watched as their friend hugged the stranger and smiled brightly at something he said. Personally it made Huck feel sick to his stomach. But he wasn't going to tell anyone that now was he? A small whisper erupted through the crowd of people that were gathered around the children. It got louder as more people joined in.

"Mr. Anderson wanted me to check up on you," the boy, was it Joseph or Slim?, said and a smile came to his features.  
"I know," Scarlet told the boy as she pulled away from the long lasting hug.

Widow Douglas let Slim come to her house with her, Huck, and Scarlet. Huck sat on the stairs and watched as his new friend talked with her old friend. -her _better_ friend- Scarlet was the first girl he liked but he knew the feeling that was coming over him. Jealousy. He didn't feel it very often, because he never focused on things that would make him jealous. But he's never felt this way before. Why was he jealous? Was he jealous at Slim? He was just a friend of Scarlet's. Like he was. A small frown came to his lips when he thought those words but he knew it was true. Biting his lip softly, he excuses himself and went outside. Even though he knew that Widow Douglas would not want him to wear it, he ended up taking his old coat.

Instead of it smelling like... Well... Whatever it smelt like. He could faintly smell Scarlet. As weird as it sounded it was true. She smelt like flowers and like the outdoors. His coat now smelt faintly of her since she wore it so much. A small smile came to his lips as he thought about the last few weeks. They had been a great time. But that Slim boy... Did his arrival mean that Mr. Anderson was done with the cattle drive and that he was coming to get his daughter? Or did he just want one of his cowboys to come and check up on his precious daughter. The blonde sat down on a rock that was nearby and continued to think. He was thinking so much that he felt like his head was going to burst, he couldn't stop thinking. He thought about everything he's ever done that's led up to him meeting Scarlet. Then all the fun that he and Scarlet had, so,e times with Tom and sometimes not.

While marveling over the memories he had of their second to last adventure, Huck was out of it. That's why he didn't notice the man come up behind him until that man grabbed him by the throat.


End file.
